Weekend Update

We finally had a weekend where we weren't running all the time. It was really nice to move at our own pace for once!

We had breakfast with Amy (sister-in-law) Saturday morning. It was nice to be able to hang out with her before she joins my brother in England in a few weeks. And, she was able to put up with the four of us for an hour and a half! That's an accomplishment in itself! We went straight to the aboretum afterwards to pick up 3 trees that we had ordered. Tom and Nolan got the pleasure of planting them that afternoon while I caught up on some TV time!

Yesterday we ran to the mall so the boys could get their haircut, and we had to take our computer into The Geek Squad. Seems we are having some motherboard issues (hopefully that's the problem) and it needs to be fixed. Thank goodness we actually invested in a warranty this time. We spent the rest of the day pulling out the Halloween decorations and spent a little time playing with the neighbor kids.

So, I won't be posting pictures for a few days until we are able to get the computer back. When we do, I will be sure to add them in to the previous posts.

Boy or Girl?

Well, we didn't get everyone called last night (sorry about that). There just didn't seem to be enough time as we went out to dinner for my Birthday and then started the bedtime routine as soon as we got home.
Thanks to everyone that voted in our poll. The minority actually was correct (as was I for once) and we are having a boy! Looks like Tori will remain the princess in the family, and the only girl grandchild on the Manning side.
Now the hard part starts...deciding on a name! We are clueless, but believe me, we will be working hard at it. We will also be doing some rearranging in the bedrooms because we only have 3 total. Our plan is to move Tori into Nolan's room after Christmas. So far, Nolan is on board...not sure Tori will agree. It should be a good fix for the time being until the baby gets older, or the basement gets finished...whichever comes first I guess!

The Wedding - Amy & Paul

Amy and I met while working at The Buckle in Mankato. We became fast friends, and remained that way even after we both moved to The Cities. Many of you may remember Amy from our wedding...she was my Maid of Honor. Tom and I moved Amy to Phoenix almost 9 years ago, and Amy and I have kept in touch ever since. Even though we didn't talk everyday, we quickly picked up where we left off when Amy announced she was getting married and had asked me to be one of her bridesmaids.

While my pictures do not do the wedding justice, Amy is one of the most beautiful brides I have ever seen, and her hubby Paul's not too shabby either.

Here are a few shots from Amy & Paul's wedding.

The bride (Amy) and I in the limo on the way to Regency Garden.

Amy and Paul "Tying the Knot"

And, OK, this picture is just for fun!

Nolan & Tori's Weekend at the Farm

While Tom & I were in Phoenix, the kids enjoyed a "vacation" at the farm. Below are some pictures of what they did while visiting Grandma & Grandpa Halloran.

Our little Equestrian. Seriously Grandpa...she's ready to ride!

Nolan and Corbett in the barn with their PJ's still on. Grandma must have been making the waffles still.

Grandma and Tori hung out at Lake Waconia while Nolan was at Preschool. Looks like a good time!

Quick update

Well, we made it home safe and sound from Phoenix. The wedding went off without a hitch, and everything was perfect (but don't consult the bride on that one...she's a perfectionist!). There will be more in my next post with pictures and such, but because we got home kind of late last night, there was no time to blog. The weather was sunny and 100 degrees everyday! We couldn't have asked for better weather.

The kids had a good time at the farm. Tori is a true farm girl, and went out to help Grandpa with the cows before we left. Nolan got to play with Corbett a couple of days as he stayed at the farm Friday and Saturday. From what I can tell they had a blast too.

We are excited for Wednesday, and very much looking forward to our ultrasound. Of course, first and foremost we want a healthy baby...but can't wait to find out if it is a boy or a girl! Thanks to those that have voted on our poll. Hopefully this baby will cooperate and let us know one way or another.

Other quick updates...Tori's ears look fabulous (no infection). Dr thought that it was more sinus related, so she did send us home with some meds anyway. She seemed much better and the runny nose was cleared up when we picked up yesterday at the farm.
Nolan is signed up for swimming lessons and begins in a couple of weeks. I know what he's thinking..."swimming lessons great, but better yet I get to go to Safari Island twice a week"!

An Excerpt from my Brother Chris's Memoir (as "Remembered" by Me)

"I explored my surroundings today, and visited a local pub called The Romping Cat (as seen to the left), where I chatted up the bartender and shared a Shandy with the Locals. As you can see, the sun was actually shining and I enjoyed the walk and took in the views of the beautiful countryside. The surrounding area is very rural, and with all of the rain it is very green. As I was not familiar enough yet with the area, I decided to head home before it got dark. On my way I realized that I may have had one too many Shandy's (the Local's were very generous and kept buying another round), and seemed to have gotten slightly lost on the way home. I soon found myself wandering through what was thought to be a grassy knoll. To my surprise, it was actually a field in which the bulls enjoy their dinner, which I found would be me soon if I didn't begin to run. I snapped this picture shortly after I jumped the fence. If you look closely, you can see the smoke still coming from the bull's nostrils. I must have been running at least 25 KPH (that's fast right?). But, in the end, I made it home safely with all limbs in tact. Next time I will remember not to wear red on my walk around town."

(Reading between the lines and liberties may have been taken in relaying this story)

Rainy weekend...and a reminder

Not a very exciting weekend for us. The rain kept us indoors for the most part, except for some shopping we needed to do on Saturday. Yesterday, Nolan and Tom went out to do boy stuff...not sure what that means, but apparently they had ice cream on the way home and forgot to bring some home to Mommy...the pregnant one!
Tori and Nolan spent most of the week being sick. A nasty cough at night, and Tori has suffered from a runny nose all week. We discovered a rather large swollen lump under her right ear, along her jawline, so we are suspecting that she is trying to fight off some type of infection. We are taking her into the doctor to get it checked out today. Hopefully, it has nothing to do with her tubes.
Tom & I leave for AZ on Thursday morning. Most know, but for those that don't, I am in my girlfriend Amy's wedding on Saturday. We are dropping the kids off at the farm on Wednesday night, and leave first thing the next morning. I just checked the weather and it is supposed to "fluctuate" between a whopping 97 and 99 degrees while we are there. Now, I understand it is supposed to be nice here this week as well, but it will be nice to enjoy a few days of heat and sunshine.

I also wanted to remind/let people know that off to the left hand side of this blog is a poll to predict the sex of the baby. You need to hurry as the poll closes in 8 days. We have our ultrasound set up for September 24th in the morning. We are very excited to find out what we are having. Tom, who is usually 100% accurate on predicting the sex, is perplexed this time around. First he said girl, but now apparently I am putting out boy vibes. Only a little over a week until we find out!

A Tutorial on How to Leave a Comment

As I check daily (sometimes several times a day) I realize that most people must not know that you can leave a comment on our blog posts. Therefore, I have put together a quick tutorial on how to make comments so you don't have to be left out of the fun. I am suspecting that after I leave this post, the comments will skyrocket!!!

How to Leave a Comment:

Step 1: Click "0 comments" (the number will change depending on the number of comments left) at the bottom of a posting. You will be taken to another page.

Step 2: Write your comment in the box.

Step 3: Verify Code. You must copy exactly what you see above the "verify code" box.

Step 4: Choose Identity. The easiest choice is the "Name/URL" option. Choose this and then type in your name (or whatever you want as long as we can identify who you are) and then skip the URL box.

Step 5: Click "Publish Your Comment" button.

And that's it! So easy! Can't wait to read all of your comments!

2008 World Champions of the St Thomas Sportsman's Softball Tournament!

On Saturday September 6th, The St Thomas Sportsmen battled through 5 games to come out on top of the 5 team field, made up of St Thomas Veterans and 4 area fire departments.

Tom at bat

Dan at bat

Brandon pitching

Bert at bat

Nolan...digging for gold

And of course there were activities for the kids. A truckload of sand was brought in and the kids got to take turns (by age group) to dig through the sand for money! Nolan & Tori collectively came up with 65 cents. Enough to buy a bag of skittles and a freezy!

Look who's totally ready...

Here's Nolan posing in his school gear.

I can't decide who was more excited today for Nolan's first day of school, me or Nolan! I managed to run back home today over my lunch hour to pick Nolan and his friend Ryan up to take them to their first day of preschool. They were waiting at the door with their shoes and backpacks on. When we got to school, I had enough time to take a couple of pictures and than Nolan was on his way. He dropped his backpack, quickly gave me a hug and kiss and sat down with the rest of the kids to play with the play-dough. I kept looking behind to see if he needed one last hug, but there was no looking back on his part. Both of his teachers said he had a great day. Funny thing though, Nolan couldn't recall much of what he did at school. His list was something like this..."I didn't get to play on the big castle (the large playground there), and I sang a song about names." I'm pretty sure there was more to his day, but not sure what it entailed!

Happy Birthday Aly & Zander

August 31, 2008

Happy Birthday Aly & Zander

Thanks for letting us celebrate your special day with you!